Deal Melee Damage to ARC Enemies

RogueProphet's 59,392-point run came from a Matriarch during the Matriarch event on Blue Gate. Get on top of it, break the armor plate over its core, then hit the core with your pickaxe until it goes down. When the Matriarch is down, spend the rest of the round on Shredders underground.

Stamina is the limit: every swing costs some. RogueProphet's run used a skill that made melee cheaper on stamina, but that was the skill tree before Frozen Trail, and the current tree has no such skill. So stamina comes from Adrenaline Shots: he took 10 stacks, plus Chemicals and Plastic Parts to craft more topside.

Bring the Equalizer to break the core plate and the Snap Hook to get on top (and back on top). A Raider Hatch Key is a good extra for this event.

I

EqualizerBreak the plate

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AnvilBackup

Snap Hook

Adrenaline Shot10 stacks

ChemicalsCraft more shots

Plastic PartsCraft more shots

×2

Light Shield

Shield Recharger

Herbal Bandage

Zipline

Photoelectric Cloak

Raider Hatch Key

On the way in, don't pull the Matriarch's attention. Let another Raider deal the first damage so it focuses on them. Watch how it moves before you Snap Hook up: its legs hit very hard, and hooking on while it's moving around a lot is dangerous.

On top, find the middle of its head: a round armor plate protects the core. Shoot that center plate with the Equalizer until it breaks. Then the core is open and every pickaxe hit scores.

The top of the Matriarch is a walkable, flat surface: it only looks like it has crevices. Stand next to the open core and swing your pickaxe nonstop. The pickaxe has two attacks: the primary is a horizontal swing, the secondary an overhead swing. The overhead swing hits the core more reliably.

Listen to every hit. A metal clang means you hit armor and scored nothing; a hit on the core sounds more like static. When stamina runs low, take an Adrenaline Shot and keep swinging.

The Matriarch can't throw you off its back. What it does is launch rockets into the air at Raiders around it, and sometimes they come back down on your position on top. Keep your shield up and heal between volleys.

If a hit knocks you off, spam the mantle button: you usually don't land far away, and RogueProphet once mantled straight back on without touching the ground. On the ground you're in real danger, because the Matriarch and the ARC it spawned tend to focus you. Get to safety, heal up, and Snap Hook back on top.

Also watch for other Raiders hooking up to plant a Deadline on the core. If one goes off while you're next to it, it kills you instantly, so get off when you see one.

When the Matriarch goes down you'll usually have 20 to 25 minutes left. Head into the underground area and melee the Shredders: their attack pattern is predictable, a bit of cover breaks their line of sight, and they give a lot of trial points. Ticks and Pops are fine to pickaxe too.

Don't melee Fireballs or Comets. Both are very dangerous up close, and a Fireball's armor blocks melee damage well while its fire kills you first. He also tried Snap Hooking onto flying ARC to pickaxe them and failed every time; he thinks staying on the Shredders would have taken him to about 70,000.

Melee points only count once you extract. When you're happy with the score, head out.